Mechanical toy



J. S. COXEY.

MECHANICAL TOY. APPLICATION 111.20 11111.19. 1920.

Patented Aug. 16, 1921.

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I. S. COXEY.

MECHANICAL TOY. APPLICATION man 1AM. 19. 1920.

1,387,923. Patented Aug. 16,1921.-

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Jasper (1002 7 Ls. COXEY.

MECHANICAL TOY. APPLICATION FILED lAN.19, 1920.

1,387,923. Patented Au 16,1921.

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J6 J1 Q In the drawings driven pulleys carrying the that figure mechanism." a

- UNITED STATESMTEMsea JASPER s. COXEY, or SPOKANE, wesrrrneron.

mormnrcar. TOY.

Application filed January 19', 1.920. Serial no. 352,270.

Zo all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JAsrnn S. GoxnY, a citizen of the United States, residing at Spokane, in the county of Spokane and State of Washington, haveinvented certain new and useful Improvements in Mechanical Toys, ofwhich the following is a specification. a

This invention relates to a mechanical toy operating tosimulate a horserace and dancfigures.

In the construction 10f mechanical toys designed to depict a'realistic race it is difiicult to impart tothe moving figures that elementof chance which is present in an actual race and therefore renders the event so interesting'in that there is no predetermined outcome. In this invention there is present amechanical construction such that a number of figures moving to simulate a race are so drlven that it is impossible to determlne, 1n advance, the outcome of the race.

i There is another feature ofthe invention,

so that thefigures of the device pass and repass each other without any 1 particular order or control on the part of the manipulator of the toy. a

A chance mechanism for stoppingthe figures at the end of the race is still another feature of the invention. Another feature isthe provision of dancing figures operated by the same mechanism drives the racing figures' and so arranged that one or more pairs of figures dance intermittently during a race.

Figure 1 is a perspective view of the toy. Fig. 21s aperspective view of the toy mechanism. Figl3' isa top plan view of the dancing figure mechanism.

Fig. 4 is a front'elevation of the dancing Fig. 5 is a vertical section through the racing figures,

an upright 36;

. Fig.6 is a side elevation ofa stop star.

- 11 detail, a base 1 carries a block 2 mounted at the center a bracket3 in 4, 5 6 and 7 pulley 4 being which a plurality of pulleys are mounted, the uppermost provided with an annulus 8 on its upper face riding in a corresponding plate 9 carried on the upper groove in the part ofthe bracket "3. The pulleys 5' and-6 each carries corresponding groove in the superposed pulley, the pulley 6also'havingan annuluslO on a similar annulus entering a I Specification of lletters I'atent. .Patented 192i thereof and which supports i its bottom faceand pulley? being provided with a groove to nulus. The pulley 7 has a raceway in its lower face accommodating balls 11 running on a plate 12, similar ball bearings 13 being provided between the opposed facesof'all The peripheries of the pulleys the pulleys. 4, 5, 6 and 7 are grooved as shownto receive belts 14, 15, 1 6, 17 and 18 for purposes to be hereinafter set forth.

axlally alined central holes, the holes being graduated in size toward the bottom pulley which has the smallest hole and standards 19, 20, 21 and 22 rise from the respective pulleys'through the holes in the superposed pulleys, as shown in Fig. 5, so that as the pulleys are revolved their respective standards 19, 20,21 and 22'revolve one within the other. These standards are extended governor 31, a control lever 32 and a go vernor stop element 33 all ofwhichmay be of used in a-disk phonograph. I The driving shaft 34 of said spring motor 29 is extended and carries a beveled pinion 35,-said shaft being supported adjacent the pinion 35 by shaft 34 and mounted in supports 37 and 38 is a driven shaft 39 having a beveled pinlon 40;meshing with the pinion 35and having end portions journaled in: said standards The pulleys 4, 5, 6 and 7 are provided with receive the said lower an any standard construction'similar' to that I 1 0 0 At rightangles to 'the motor 1 87 and 38, an intermediate'portion 411 of" said shaft being angular in cross section to receive a pulley 42 having a very irregular face, that is to say, the said pulley 42 is provided with undulations on its surface, which undulations run circumferentially of the pulley. The pulley 42 is mounted on the angular portion 41 of said shaft, as stated, and

may reciprocate thereon. To accomplish this movement the said pulley 42 carries a finger 43 having a dog 44 running in the threads of a reversible screw or two-way helices 45 which is fixed by means of a screw 46 to the support 38 and thus as the shaft 39 is driven the pulley 42 will be reciprocated back and forth thereon. The belts 14, 15, 16 and 17 previously mentioned as running on the pulleys 4, 5, 6 and 7 are trained over thepulley 42 and guided by vertical fingers 47 carried on a support 48 and by horizontally extending fingers 49 carried on a support'50. These belts are more or less elastic and therefore as the motor shaft 34. drives the pulley 42 and the said pulley 42 reciprocates the irregular surface thereof will drive the pulleys 4, 5, 6 and 7 at irregularly varying speeds and thus the figures 23, 24, 25 and 26 will be moved in the same direction at irregularly varying speeds and thereby caused to pass and repass each other without any particular order making it impossible to determine the position which will be-maintained by any particular figure with respect to the other a the motor thereby figures during movement. The figures 23, 24, 25 and 26 each carry a dog 51. Adjacent the top 27 of the box 28 and carried on brackets 52 is a shaft 53 carrying stars 54,

55, 56 and 57 one of which is typically illustrated in Fig. 6 and, aswill be observed, has aseries of equal points 58 and one long point 59. Adjacent these stars is mounted a cross bar 60 carried on supports 61 and connecting with the governor stop lever 33 of the spring motor so that as said member 60 is depressed the motor will be stopped until again set for operation by the stopping and starting lever 32 which projects through the side of the boX 28. The racing figures moving around an arena or race course 62 laid off by posts 63 on a base plate 64 on the top of the b01128 will, by reason of the dogs 51 engage the respective star wheels located in their paths andprojecting through corre sponding slots in'the top 27 of the box 28 and will revolve said stars s0 that eventually some one figure, after having engaged all the points of the point 59 to engage the member 60 and stop indicating a finish of the race. As will be seen from the construction described these stars are loosely mounted and are revoluble by the figures which move at irregularly varying speeds with respect to each other and thus there is a two-fold element of chance-involved in. the operation as saidyokes are swung of the figures, namely the speed at which they move with respect to each other and the means by which they are stopped to indicate a finish of the race. In this way a very realistic race is staged by the operation of the figures. The'spring motor 29 may be wound by means of the winding key 65 working through an' escutcheon 66 on the side of the box 28. The boX 28 is suitably bound at the corners by corner pieces 67 to prevent damage to the corners and adjacent one corner cut-outs 68 and 69 are provided.

Diagonally across the corner at which the cut-outs 68 and 69 occur and supported in uprights 7 O is a shaft 71 which carries a revoluble element 72 having peripheral lugs 73 and 74, the shaft 71 carrying fingers 75 and 76. The sides of the member 72 are provided with radial corrugations or teeth 77. Vertical spindles 78 and 79 are mounted adjacent the shaft 71 and carry yokes 80 and '81 respectively which are provided with fingers 82 and 83 carrying figures simulating ballet dancers or the like. The yokes 80 and 81 carry, respectively,'lugs 84 and 85 which are causedto engage orbe disengaged from the respective toothed surfaces of the member 72, said yokesbeing swung by the peripheral lugs 73 and'74 and the fingers 7 5 and 76. When either of the lugs 84 or85 engages the corrugations of the member 72 itis caused to chatter the yoke 80 or 81 and thereby vibrate its respective finger 82 or 83, causing the figures carried thereby to simulate dancing movement. As will be seen from an examinationof Fig. 2 of the drawings, the shaft 71 carries a pulley 86 which is driven from the pulley 7 by means of the belt 18. As the said shaft 71 revolves, carrying with it the member 72, the lugs carriedby the latter and the fingers carried by the former serve to intermittently swing the yokes 80 and 81 so that the figures carried thereby will dance, then remain inoperative 111 a retracted position within their respective opening for a short time and then dance agaln. The motion of a the dancing figures, like the motion of the racing figures is also controlled by the irregular surface pulley 42 and hence the said figures will dance first fast, then slow, dependent on the particular surface of the pulley 42 with which the belt on the standard 7 is at that time in contact.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed as new is: star, will cause 1ts long 1. A toy comprising a plurality of superposed pulleys, each having a central opening, means for rotating said pulleys simultaneously at relatively varying speeds, standards rising from the several pulleys through the openings in the superposed pulleys, figures carried by said standards, a brake device arranged below the paths of the several figures, star Wheels in the respective paths of the several figures and provided each with an elonfigure carried by said yoke, means on the gated tooth to actuate said brake device, and shaft for swinging the yoke to advance or means on the several figures to actuate the retract the figure, and means driven by said 10 respective star Wheels. shaft to vibrate the yoke and the figure.

2. A toy comprising a rotatable shaft, In testimony whereof I aifix my signature. means for rotating said shaft at an irregular speed,.a yoke disposed adjacent said shaft, a JASPER S. COXEY. [L. s.] 

